Manufacturer of clay roof tiles, bricks, façade bricks and roof-integrated photovoltaic systems from its own Swiss production.
Zürcher Ziegeleien AG
Regensdorf (head office) · Laufen (roof tile plant) · Istighofen (Bürglen TG) (roof tile and brick plant)New on Amplifa
About Zürcher Ziegeleien
Zürcher Ziegeleien AG (ZZ) is a Swiss manufacturer of clay building materials with its head office in Regensdorf and production plants in Laufen (roof tile plant) and Istighofen (roof tile and brick plant). Founded in 1865, the company produces clay roof tiles in numerous shapes (interlocking, beaver-tail, flat, smooth, heart-shaped, channel and pantile tiles), bricks including the thermally insulating lightweight brick Porotherm with mineral perlite filling, as well as façade bricks and facing bricks produced by hand-moulding, extrusion and water-struck processes. The product range is complemented by roof-integrated photovoltaic systems (Unitas, zzsunstar biuno), insulation and system accessories. Production includes the in-house mould foundry/gypsum works for interlocking tile moulds as well as custom products such as conical special tiles, hip tiles, bull's-eye windows or bat dormers. Customers include residential, industrial, commercial and public buildings, heritage preservation, architecture and the roofing trade; since 2020 the company has been part of the swisspor Group.
- Site
- Regensdorf
- Processes
- Clay roof tile production (interlocking tiles, beaver-tail tiles, flat tiles, smooth tiles,, Brick/masonry unit production (Porotherm lightweight brick, SwissModul, Einstein masonry, Sumo, Extrusion (façade bricks/facing bricks), Hand-moulding process (hand-moulded bricks), Water-struck process, Mould foundry/gypsum works (production of the moulds for interlocking tiles), Custom production of special tiles (conical special tiles, tile extensions/shortenings,, Roof covering/instruction pitched roof (tiling types interlocking and beaver-tail tiles)
- Materials
- Clay (tile/brick clay), Loam, Perlite (mineral filling Porotherm), Gypsum (moulds in the gypsum works), Silicon (solar cells), Glass (glass-glass modules, acrylic/glass tiles), Sand (mould sanding), Perlite (mineral filling)
- Certificates
- CE / DoP (EU 305/2011)
- Founded
- 1865
- Industries
- Residential buildings, Industrial and commercial buildings, Public buildings, Heritage preservation, Architecture, Roofing and construction trades
- 01
Raw material extraction clay/loam
- 02
Processing
- 03
Mould foundry/gypsum works
- 04
Extrusion or hand-moulding/water-struck
- 05
Drying and firing
- 06
System accessories/insulation/PV
- 07
Installation
- 08
Instruction and system warranty
Raw materials and processes
Clay (tile/brick clay)
Main raw material for roof tiles, bricks and façade bricks from the company's own pits.
Loam
Historical starting material of tile and brick production.
Perlite (mineral filling)
Mineral filling of the thermally insulating lightweight brick Porotherm.
Gypsum
Material of the moulds in the in-house gypsum works for interlocking tiles.
Silicon
Solar cell material of the roof-integrated photovoltaic systems.
Glass
Glass-glass modules and acrylic/glass tiles for roof and PV.
Sand
Mould sanding in the hand-moulding process for facing bricks.
Sites
Regensdorf
CHHead office
Laufen
CHRoof tile plant
- Materials
- Clay
- Interlocking tile production (modernisation announced from November 2026)
Istighofen (Bürglen TG)
CHRoof tile and brick plant
- Materials
- Clay
- Roof tile and brick production
- Mould foundry/gypsum works
Products
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clay roof tile production (interlocking tiles, beaver-tail tiles, flat tiles, smooth tiles,Casting | – | – | – | – | Clay, Loam |
| Brick/masonry unit production (Porotherm lightweight brick, SwissModul, Einstein masonry, SumoCasting | – | – | – | – | Clay, Perlite |
| Extrusion (façade bricks/facing bricks)Casting | – | – | – | – | Clay |
| Hand-moulding process (hand-moulded bricks)Casting | – | – | – | – | Clay, Sand |
| Water-struck processCasting | – | – | – | – | Clay |
| Mould foundry/gypsum works (production of the moulds for interlocking tiles)Casting | – | – | – | – | Gypsum, Clay |
| Custom production of special tiles (conical special tiles, tile extensions/shortenings,Installation | – | – | – | – | Clay |
| Roof covering/instruction pitched roof (tiling types interlocking and beaver-tail tiles)Installation | – | – | – | – | Clay |
4 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Extrusion press | – | – | – | – | Istighofen / Laufen (historical mention, mechanisation of the brickyards) |
| Ring kiln | – | – | – | – | Zürcher Ziegeleien (historical mention) |
| Roof tile plant | – | 1 | – | – | Laufen (Wahlenstrasse 80, 4242 Laufen) |
| Roof tile and brick plant | – | 1 | – | – | Istighofen (Wilerstrasse 1, 8575 Istighofen) |
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality and standards
Products are documented with declarations of performance (DoP pursuant to EU Regulation 305/2011); the DoP search is available in several languages. For pitched roofs, ZZ offers a system warranty with certified partner companies.
| Evidence | Regensdorf | Laufen | Istighofen |
|---|---|---|---|
| CE / DoP (EU 305/2011) |
History
- 1865
Founding of the Mechanical Brick Factory in Zurich (1 June 1865); foundation stone of the later Zürcher Ziegeleien
- 1892
Founding of the Thonwarenfabrik Laufen (4 July 1892)
- 1912
Merger with Ziegeleien Albishof-Heurieth to form Zürcher Ziegeleien (initiative of Ernst and Jacob II. Schmidheiny)
- 1941
Full integration of the Eastern Swiss brickyards of the Schmidheiny Group (Istighofen, Bruggwald, Oberriet, Heerbrugg)
- 1962
14 companies, 30 plants, around 2'250 employees
- 1998
Construction business operates as ZZ Wancor AG; remaining group later becomes Conzzeta AG
- 1999
Acquisition by the Austrian Wienerberger AG including the Laufen roof tile plant
- 2000
Relocation of the head office to Regensdorf; production concentrated in Laufen and Istighofen; export markets (among others Scandinavia), Urban façade bricks, PV systems zzsunstar biuno and Unitas
- 2020
Acquisition by the swisspor Group
- 2021
Return to the historical name Zürcher Ziegeleien
- 2026
Modernisation of interlocking tile production at the Laufen plant announced from November 2026